'No talks': Key Rangers man offers huge update on future as 27y/o joins former teammates in sensible move

Dessers said last week to Dutch media that he would seek conversations with Rangers manager Philippe Clement should he not start regularly, with Hamza Igamane taking over as the team’s principal striker. ‘I’m at a great club, but I’m 30 years old and want to play every week,” he said. “Preferably at Rangers. If there are different feelings about that internally, then we need to talk.”

Since then, though, Dessers has scored five goals in three matches - including excellent strikes against Manchester United and Dundee United. The ex-Feyenoord hitman has been linked with a move to Serie A, with a couple of Italian clubs reported to be monitoring his situation.

However, Dessers says he has “unfinished business” at Rangers and admitted that he has not discussed his future with Clement or anyone else at Ibrox.

"No talks at all,” the Nigerian said after the 3-1 win over Dundee Utd. “I don't mind that. I try to focus on the football be the things that are happening on the pitch.

"Those are the things that I can control. And like Sunday, I'm just happy to be out there with the guys and fight for the points and be important. That's what I want."

"There's a lot of unfinished business at Rangers for me. That's also why I kept pushing in the last weeks, in the gym, in training, in the minutes that you get, that's because of that.

"I feel like I'm in a good place. I've been feeling that for a couple of weeks. I've been working hard on and off the pitch and then then if you get the moments like this, to show it, and then you need to show it.

"For striker, rhythm is so important, but I was happy to be on the pitch to play together up top with Hamza. And I think we I think we have a very good connection, and hopefully that can grow as well."

Dessers has endured a fractured relationship at times with the Rangers support and was recently booed by a section of the fanbase when coming on against Aberdeen. Nevertheless, he has scored 18 goals across all competitions this season - 40 in total during his 18 months at Ibrox.

"Yeah, that's not easy,” said Dessers on criticism from his own supporters. “That's quite hard to take. But on the other hand, I've had a lot of positive interaction as well with fans around the stadium in the city, and I try to take that to heart.

"And when I get out there, I just want to fight with my teammates who I see every day, who respect me, who know the effort I put in in the training ground and then to win like this. That just makes me very happy."

Asked if he is driven on by a desire to silence the critics, Dessers added: "I don't know. I know at this club, things can change very fast as well.

"For example, the stick that a player like Tav [captain James Tavernier] gets sometimes, he's a Hall of Fame player, he has scored more than 100 goals for this club, 400 games, all of this. And then I'm thinking, maybe there will always be something to talk about.

"But I just try to enjoy the beautiful moments at this club and I'm lucky that I have plenty of these and those are way more important to me than the few negative moments."

One player who has left Rangers is English midfielder Kieran Dowell, whose loan move to Birmingham City was confirmed on Monday. Dowell has become a peripheral player this season under Clement and joins former Ibrox teammates Ben Davies and Scott Wright at the title-chasing English League One side.

A statement on the Rangers website read: “Rangers can confirm midfielder Kieran Dowell has joined Birmingham City on loan until the end of the season subject to international clearance. Everyone at Rangers wishes Kieran well for the rest of the campaign.”

Dowell, 27, still has another 18 months on his contract at Rangers. He has played 32 times for the club - predominantly as a substitute - since arriving on a free transfer from Norwich City in the summer of 2023.

The former Everton youngster had fallen behind Nicolas Raskin, Mohamed Diomande, Connor Barron and youngsters such as Bailey Rice in the midfield pecking order and was unlikely to feature much at Rangers between now and the end of the current campaign.